One of the largest salad chains, Sweetgreen, recently filed for an IPO, which would make it an early player among major salad chains to go public. Swe

Ahead of IPO, Sweetgreen’s online sales soar

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2021-07-07 19:30:08

One of the largest salad chains, Sweetgreen, recently filed for an IPO, which would make it an early player among major salad chains to go public. Sweetgreen’s emphasis on healthy, sustainable food as well as a seamless digital experience has resulted in significant growth over the past several years. With a Sweetgreen IPO on the horizon, consumer transaction data reveals how the company’s sales soared prior to the pandemic and how much of that growth has been driven by the online channel.

Sweetgreen launched a digital app in 2013, making it one of the first fast casual restaurants to offer mobile app and direct online ordering on its website. A monthly average of 9 percent of sales in 2013 took place online, a share that has grown in subsequent years. Sweetgreen’s overall sales have also increased tenfold since January 2013. Notably, the salad chain’s sales experience some seasonality, with sales in November and December generally remaining lower compared to the rest of the year.

Another major milestone occurred in January 2016, when Sweetgreen relaunched its app with more advanced features. The company experienced particularly strong sales growth that year, with a monthly average growth rate of 79 percent year-over-year. The average monthly percentage of online sales also reached 25 percent in 2016.